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brizreading's review against another edition
4.0
Essentially fanfic that tries to correct some of the blatantly anti-Semitic stereotyping in Dickens.
This is my third Eisner (after this and this), and I think I like this one least so far. The writing risks teetering into heavy-handedness a few times, and I found the pacing a bit whirlwind. We follow Moses Fagin - who would become the infamous "Fagin the Jew" of Oliver Twist - from his birth, through various misfortunes, until he gets to his present position. It's incredibly interesting from the historical perspective: I didn't know, for example, that the British Jewish community - at least of the 19th century - was made up of established, wealthier Sephardic Jews who had immigrated in the 15th century (?), and poorer Ashkenazi Jews who had emigrated from eastern Europe following the 19th century pogroms. Industrial Revolution-era London is also always fascinating from a development economist's perspective.
But! In addition to the writing and pacing, I also preferred Eisner's art in the New York City stories: the lines are sharper, cleaner, bolder. Here, everything is watery and blurred: sometimes this is evocative and nice, such as the panels of Fagin at the docks (with the monochrome watercolors fading with the perspective, as look over bobbing ships, seagulls, and the water - v nice), or the panel of Fagin with the locket portrait of his younger self (this panel also dripped with schmaltz, though).
This is my third Eisner (after this and this), and I think I like this one least so far. The writing risks teetering into heavy-handedness a few times, and I found the pacing a bit whirlwind. We follow Moses Fagin - who would become the infamous "Fagin the Jew" of Oliver Twist - from his birth, through various misfortunes, until he gets to his present position. It's incredibly interesting from the historical perspective: I didn't know, for example, that the British Jewish community - at least of the 19th century - was made up of established, wealthier Sephardic Jews who had immigrated in the 15th century (?), and poorer Ashkenazi Jews who had emigrated from eastern Europe following the 19th century pogroms. Industrial Revolution-era London is also always fascinating from a development economist's perspective.
But! In addition to the writing and pacing, I also preferred Eisner's art in the New York City stories: the lines are sharper, cleaner, bolder. Here, everything is watery and blurred: sometimes this is evocative and nice, such as the panels of Fagin at the docks (with the monochrome watercolors fading with the perspective, as look over bobbing ships, seagulls, and the water - v nice), or the panel of Fagin with the locket portrait of his younger self (this panel also dripped with schmaltz, though).
crowyhead's review against another edition
3.0
I know it's probably sacrilege to say so, but I realized while reading this that I just don't like Eisner's art very much at all. I guess it's just the style I don't like; everyone, even the "beautiful" women, looked very ugly to me, and I guess the style was just generally more cartoony than I usually like. I think I also tend to like more angular forms, and all of Eisner's forms are quite rounded. The story was good, though, and the foreword and afterword were also very interesting.
organicwario's review against another edition
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
pearseanderson's review against another edition
2.0
The beginning was uncompelling, the middle was summary, and the end was preachy. Amazing art, but if it was any shorter I wouldn't stopped reading. 5/10.
psalmcat's review against another edition
5.0
Great book! One of the more disturbing things in literature is lack of humanized ethnic characters. Eister does a good job of giving us a believable backstory for one of the more egregiously negative portrayals of a Jewish character. When Fagin meets Oliver, the story tracks along with Dickens' version of things exactly. Well done.
auntie_terror's review against another edition
4.0
This is the story of one of the characters of Charles Dickens' "Oliver Twist" which the said character has set out to make known to look less bad than he was made out to be.
Will Eisner's style of drawing here felt a little Disneyish to me, while the story felt a little too didactic in its purpose. Of course it is important to explain why the antisemitic representation of Fagin in Dickens' novel is (while not surprising in historical context) worthy of criticism and discussion. But this felt a little too "in your face" - which often doesn't achieve the dessired effect.
Will Eisner's style of drawing here felt a little Disneyish to me, while the story felt a little too didactic in its purpose. Of course it is important to explain why the antisemitic representation of Fagin in Dickens' novel is (while not surprising in historical context) worthy of criticism and discussion. But this felt a little too "in your face" - which often doesn't achieve the dessired effect.
glittergrandma's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Racial slurs, and Antisemitism
Moderate: Violence
ori2590's review against another edition
5.0
This was such a good read. An adaptation of Dicken's Oliver Twist. Eisner humanised the villains from Oliver Twist and gave them a nice origin story full of tragedy and crime. The artwork was amazing and the script was top notch. Definitely a must read.
jameseckman's review against another edition
3.0
Fast read, but not as good as his New York or Spirit stories.
depleti's review against another edition
3.0
Just found this on a library shelf and realized I've never really read anything by Will Eisner, despite how famous he is in the comics world. His art is strangely intriguing to me, I don't hate it but don't love it. It sometimes borders on grotesque, but never loses its appeal. The pacing felt harried and choppy but that's just because I prefer more expanded storytelling (generational differences, maybe, lol). This still digs into history I never thought of or knew about before, and offers insight into a character whose name I always recognized but never really knew.